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News Release - State Board Approves BEST Grants

State Board approves BEST grants Board also holds study session to
discuss educator preparation program

The Colorado State Board of Education met
for its regularly scheduled meeting June 12 & 13. Highlights from the
meeting include:

Building Excellent Schools Today

The Colorado State Board of Education
voted to approve the list of grants submitted by the Public School
Capital Construction Assistance Board for 2013-14 Building Excellent
Schools Today (BEST)
cash and
lease-purchase grants. CDE’s
Capital Construction Office received 63 qualifying grant applications
for BEST funds from school districts and charter schools. Three of the
applications were withdrawn by the applicants, leaving 60 applications
for consideration by the Capital Construction Assistance Board. The
total grant amounts requested were $227.7 million in state funds and
$80.3 million in matching funds for a total of $308 million in total
project costs. Of these, the Capital Construction Assistance Board
recommended to the State Board of Education funding for 24 cash grants
totaling $15.7 million, six lease-purchase grants totaling $94.7 million
and two back-up lease-purchase grants totaling $47.7 million.

Post-Secondary Workforce Readiness
Endorsed Diploma

Staff from CDE and the Colorado Department
of Higher Education updated the board on the development process for the
Post-Secondary Workforce Readiness endorsed diploma and reviewed and
discussed the criteria for awarding an endorsed diploma.

The diploma identifies student
excellence over and above a standard high school diploma. The
endorsement recognizes high school graduates for meeting minimum
academic qualifications for admission to all open, modified open, or
moderately selective public institutions of higher education in
Colorado, as well as priority consideration for admission into
Colorado’s selective and highly selective institutions. The
presentation is in preparation for a joint meeting in August with the
state board and Colorado Commission on Higher Education to take action
on the Post-Secondary Workforce Readiness endorsed diploma criteria. To
view the PowerPoint presentation, click
here. To view the criteria,
click
here.

Recognition of Outstanding Students

The board recognized John L. Brock
(Arapahoe High School) and Amy Chen (Highlands Ranch High School) who
were selected as 2013 U.S. Presidential Scholars. This program
was created in 1964 to honor top-performing students in each state.
The White House Commission on
Presidential Scholars selects honored scholars annually based on
academic success, artistic excellence, essays, school evaluations and
transcripts, as well as evidence of community service, leadership and
demonstrated commitment to high ideals.

Educator Licensure

The board approved cut scores for
the PRAXIS II Mathematics #5161 and English Language Arts #5038 content
exams. The cut scores set the minimum score an applicant must
achieve in order to pass the exam. These exams will be available to
candidates in Fall 2013, the next scheduled assessment date. To view the
presentation, including the new cut scores, click
here.

Educator Preparation

The board held a study session on
its role in authorizing educator preparation programs. The session
provided an overview of the current authorization/reauthorization
process, focusing on the roles and responsibilities of the state board
and Colorado Department of Higher Education. Representatives from
educator preparation programs shared their perspectives on the process
and responded to questions from the board. The board also discussed
efforts underway to reimagine educator preparation. To view the
presentation, click
here.

Global Education Leaders’ Program

Staff provided the board with an
update on Colorado's participation in the Global Education Leaders’
Program work to date, with a focus on the recent
philanthropically-funded gathering in Sydney, Australia. To view the
presentation, click
here.

Early Literacy Grant Program

The state board voted to approve staff
recommendations for grant
recipients for the Early Literacy Grant Program. The $4 million
competitive grant program, which is part of the READ Act, provides money
to local education providers to implement literacy support and
intervention instruction programs to assist students in kindergarten and
first-, second-, and third-grades to achieve reading competency. To view
the presentation, click
here.

READ Act

The board approved the
addition of
Terra Nova to the list of approved summative assessments for use
under the READ Act. In March, the
board approved a list of diagnostic and summative assessments. Following
that meeting, there was an opportunity for the publishers of assessments
that were not approved to appeal that action. CTB-McGraw Hill appealed
to have Terra Nova be reconsidered as an approved summative assessment.

The board approved
recommendations for the
Expelled and At-Risk Student Services Grant Program. The program
provides educational services to expelled students and prevents future
suspensions and expulsions through a comprehensive range of strategies
that are proven effective to help students who are at risk of suspension
or expulsion. To view the presentation, click
here.

Other Action

The board voted to approve the
application for certification of a multi-district online school
submitted by Colorado Digital BOCES on behalf of Colorado Prep Online
Academy.